Bag Book

The invention relates to scrap books, collector books, and the like.

The invention provides a book with a plurality of pages having pockets into which are tucked items to be saved, such as awards, art work, certificates, confidential papers, recordings of events, ideas and plans, photographs, newspaper clippings, messages and notes, letters and mail, maps, school work, souvenirs, keepsakes, writings, programs, birthday cards, receipts, pamphlets and numerous other items.

The invention is particularly characterized in its simplicity of construction and use of standard readily available inexpensive materials. Like traditional scrap books, collected items may be glued or pasted into the book. Additionally, collected items are inserted into pockets. The book is expandable without adding extra pages because the pages and pockets expand to accommodate quantities of items and thicker items than otherwise accommodated by traditional scrap books or pocketed photoalbums or the like. This pocket expansion capability also enables additional items to be collected beyond those normally saved in traditional scrap books or pocketed photoalbums, for example three dimensional items, such as small kits, magnifying glasses, pencil collections, instruction manuals, small tools, paperback books, children's books, booklets, children's phonograph records, casette tapes, and so on.

The book further facilitates and encourages the collecting and saving of items due to the ease and facility of item storage provided thereby. This characteristic is particularly desirable because it minimizes user efforts otherwise deterring the saving and collecting of valuable momentos. The present invention provides a simple, efficient, and minimal user effort system for collecting and storing such momentos. This in turn fosters increased retention of valuable momentos, and greater subsequent enjoyment thereof.

FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of a book constructed in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of an open condition of the book of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view taken along line 3--3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view taken along line 4--4 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is an assembly sequence view illustrating folding of a bag to form a page of the book of FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 shows an alternate embodiment of a page of the book of FIG. 2.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing an alternate bag embodiment for a page of the book of FIG. 2.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing a folded condition of the bag of FIG. 7.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show a bag book 2 comprising a plurality of bags such as 4-7 bound together along an edge to provide a book. In the embodiment shown, the binder 8 is in the form of a plastic ring binder having a plurality of rings such as 10 extending through apertures such as 12 in the bags. Each bag forms a page of the book and provides a pocket such as 14 in the interior of the bag. Each bag is open at the top end such as 16 and is closed at the right, left and bottom edges 18, 20 and 22, respectively, and is bound at left edge 20. The bags are folded upwardly to define an upwardly facing edge 24, FIG. 3, prior to binding to form an auxiliary pocket 26 between upwardly facing edge 24 and the body 28 of the bag. Each bag page thus has two pockets 14 and 26. The left end 30 of upwardly facing edge 24 is bound with left bag edge 20 in binding 8. The right end 32 is fastened to right bag edge 18 to form auxiliary pocket 26. This fastening is by means of adhesive tape 34, glue, a clip, crimping, string, wire, a staple, or the like.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-5, bag 4 is of the flat bottom type having a bottom horizontal wall 36, FIG. 5, of left-right and forward-rearward horizontal extension, and having side bellows such as 38 in the left and right edges 20 and 18 enabling forward-rearward expansion. Rearward edge 24 of bottom horizontal wall 36 is folded upwardly, FIG. 5, to form upwardly facing edge 24 and auxiliary pocket 26. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-5, forward edge 40 of bottom wall 36 is the bottom edge of main pocket 14 in the open top of the bag. In this embodiment, edge 24 is folded upwardly to a point below open top 16 of the bag such that auxiliary pocket 26 is shallower than main pocket 14 in the bag. The bottom of auxiliary pocket 26 is formed by crease 41 in the bag rearward vertical wall 29. Crease 41 is vertically spaced above edge 40. Side bellows 38 is formed by a pair of outer creases 42 and 44, FIG. 5, and an inner crease 46 with sheet-like bag side wall sections 48 and 50 therebetween. The right end 32 of upwardly facing edge 24 is fastened only to outer crease 44 adjacent thereto, to enable expansion of inner crease 46 and the other outer crease 42 away from crease 44.

In an alternate embodiment, forward edge 40 of bottom wall 36 is folded upwardly, FIG. 6, to form a second upwardly facing edge 40 and a second auxiliary pocket 52 on the front side of bag 4, opposite auxiliary pocket 26 on the rear side of bag 4 formed by upwardly facing rear edge 24. In this embodiment, a main pocket 14 is provided, with two auxiliary pockets 26 and 52 on opposite sides thereof, each of the auxiliary pockets being shallower than the main pocket but having a bottom pocket edge 54, FIG. 6, at the same vertical level as the main pocket. Edge 54 is the center of bottom wall 36, FIG. 5, of a flat bottom bag.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show a bag 56 of the crease bottom type as at crease 58 having left-right extension, but no forward-rearward extension. The left and right edges of the bag may have side bellows enabling forward-rearward expansion, the side bellows being formed by a pair of outer creases and an inner crease with sheet-like bag side wall sections therebetween, comparably to that above described. Bag 56 is folded upwardly to define upwardly facing edge 58, FIG. 8, prior to binding, to form auxiliary pocket 60 between upwardly facing edge 58 and the body of bag 56, such that the bag page formed by bag 56 has two pockets, main pocket 62 and auxiliary pocket 60. Alternatively, bag 56 may be bound without folding the bottom crease upwardly, yielding a single pocket 62 per bag.

It is thus seen that there is provided a bag book 2 constructed in one embodiment of standard paper grocery bags such as 4 or 56, for example comprising a plurality of bags such as 4 each open at the top 16, and closed at bottom 22 and left and right edges 20 and 18. The left and right edges have side bellows such as 38 enabling forward-rearward expansion. The bottom edge of the bag is folded upwardly to define an upwardly facing edge 24 forming an auxiliary pocket 26 in addition to main pocket 14 in the open top 16 of the bag. The bottom of the main pocket of the bag is the bottom crease such as 40, 54, or 64 in the bag after upward folding. The bags are bound together along left edge 20, including left end 30 of upwardly facing edges such as 24 and 58.

It is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the appended claims.